Chapter 64: I’ll Cover the Rear

"Young friend, that sunlight just now—what was it?" Even while fleeing, Kamado Tanjuro couldn't stop thinking about the sudden sunlight that appeared earlier. Sunlight was the absolute bane of all demons. If only they could figure out where that sunlight had come from... "That wasn't sunlight, just another kind of light source similar to sunlight..." Hikigaya Hachiman ruthlessly shattered Kamado Tanjuro's hopeful thoughts. "Another kind of light source?" Hearing this, after a brief moment of disappointment, Tanjuro became curious again. Was there really a light source in this world that resembled sunlight? "It's basically a high-frequency electric lamp that simulates sunlight. You can find these things in your shops as well. But it's just a lookalike — it can't harm demons like real sunlight does..." As he spoke, Hikigaya Hachiman scratched his nose awkwardly. In the heat of the moment, he had resorted to this desperate measure, hoping for a miracle. Unexpectedly, Muzan Kibutsuji's courage was even smaller than the system had suggested. He didn't bother to check whether the "sunlight" hitting him was actually damaging him — he just ran away immediately. But this trick could only be used once. Now that Muzan had figured it out, he must be furious. "Your ideas are really wild..." Hearing Hikigaya Hachiman's story of scaring Muzan away with fake sunlight, Kamado Tanjuro could only admire the man's cleverness after a long pause. If it were him, he wouldn't have thought to use light, let alone come up with such a simple yet effective way to fend off the enemy. "That's just a little cleverness. In the end, people rely on real strength." Hikigaya Hachiman did not let Tanjuro's praise go to his head; instead, he stayed very alert. Scaring Muzan away was only a temporary tactic, not a lasting solution. On the contrary, if he and Tanjuro were strong enough, they wouldn't need to run away — it would be Muzan who should be fleeing! "But having wisdom is good. Blind brute force rarely succeeds." Tanjuro had his own thoughts about Hachiman's words. "Maybe so." Hachiman nodded but didn't argue. He continued leading Tanjuro and his family down the mountain. Bang! Suddenly, a dark shadow streaked across above them and crashed down not far ahead, kicking up a cloud of snowflakes. "Damn humans! How dare you trick me?!" Before Muzan's figure even appeared, his furious voice already echoed through the wind and snow. Clearly, after fleeing in panic, Muzan realized nothing had happened to him and understood that he had been fooled by Hikigaya Hachiman. The mighty Demon King was repeatedly mocked by a nobody human. Already emotionally unstable, Muzan plunged into a state of rage. He had been tracking the scent left by Hachiman's group in the snow and finally caught up to them at the foot of the mountain. "System, how much longer until dawn?" Looking at the red-eyed Muzan in front of him, Hachiman silently asked the system in his mind. "About half an hour left. Host, don't act recklessly! Your cooperation with me can hold out through this time!" Because they were still in the same dimension, the intelligent system could re-enter Hachiman's mind. Seeing Hachiman had just spent 2,000 spirit coins to buy a skill, the system immediately understood his plan. "Half an hour?" Hachiman didn't respond aloud. He silently calculated and then put Kamado Tanjuro down from his back. "Come here..." He beckoned to Tanjuro's eldest son, Kamado Tanjiro, signaling him to come and catch his father. "Cough cough, young friend, what are you trying to do?" Tanjuro, helped by Tanjiro, noticed something off about Hachiman and looked at him with confusion. "The sun will rise in half an hour. You all continue down the mountain. I'll hold this demon off for half an hour." After calmly explaining his plan, Hachiman gripped his blade and stepped toward Muzan Kibutsuji. "Wait!" Hearing Hachiman's plan, Tanjuro's face showed deep emotion. He never expected that the system's helper would go this far. With admiration for Hachiman's resolve and gratitude for saving his family, Tanjuro struggled internally but made a difficult decision. "Detecting Kamado Tanjuro is teaching you a skill. Do you accept?" Hachiman turned to Tanjuro and was about to ask if there was anything else to say when this message popped up on his panel. "Teaching a skill?" Puzzled, Hachiman instinctively clicked "Confirm." After all, he was about to face Muzan. The more skills, the better. "Host agrees to accept skill. Skill — Transmission of Sun Breathing begins!" "What?!" Hachiman looked up at Tanjuro in surprise as countless memories not originally his flooded his mind. "Why?" Though the skill transfer seemed long, only a few seconds passed. Seeing the "Sun Breathing (Advanced)" label newly added to his skill panel, Hachiman's expression became complicated. He knew from the system that Sun Breathing was the highest-level technique in this world and a treasured heirloom of the Kamado family. Why would Tanjuro give such a precious thing to a stranger he'd only known for less than a day? "Things, no matter how good, are never more precious than family." Facing Hachiman's question, Tanjuro looked at his family with gentle eyes. He knew his exhausted body was no match for Muzan. He also couldn't stop Hachiman from trying to hold Muzan off alone so the family could escape. Since that was the case, breaking the family rule that Sun Breathing could only be passed down within the family and giving it to Hachiman to increase his survival chances was the only thing he could do. "Thank you!" Hachiman nodded in understanding and charged toward Muzan Kibutsuji. "Please make sure you survive!" Watching Hachiman's departing back, Tanjuro felt a pang of guilt. Protecting his family's safety was supposed to be his responsibility as the head of the family, yet now he had to rely on a friendly stranger to hold Muzan off... "Let's go quickly!" After a brief moment of sadness, Tanjuro regained his usual calm. He knew seeing Hachiman risk his life would break his family's hearts. Now it was up to him to play the cold, ruthless villain who would force everyone to move forward!